Hollow Knight Silksong hopefuls spiral as Gamescom Opening Night Live host Geoff Keighley asks “first time?” while dressed as a clown: “DAMN YOU, GEOFFFFF”

Just before Gamescom 2025‘s Opening Night Live kicks off later today, emcee Geoff Keighley has published what the most optimistic members of the Hollow Knight fandom are interpreting as a Silksong wink.

Another expo has rolled around, which means once more Hollow Knight devotees have geared themselves up for what now feels borderline mythical: any sign of Silksong. Although it skipped the latest Indie World Nintendo Direct, a fresh online message from Geoff Keighley might be nudging toward an upcoming Silksong reveal… at least that’s what the community is desperate to believe.

All Keighley offers is the four-word question “First time?” followed by a clown emoji and a self-shot in which he sports a bright red honk-nose. “See you tomorrow for Gamescom ONL.” For the uninitiated, the circus makeup doubles as the unofficial mascot for the Silksong faithful—an emblem of their hopes being punctured time and again. The replies unfolded exactly as predicted, one devotee screaming back, “DON’T DO THIS TO ME!”

Enthusiasts are flooding Reddit to decipher Keighley’s cryptic pic; one thread declares, “THIS IS SOMEHOW REAL GEOFF JUST TEASED SILKSONG FOR GAMESCOM.” In the comments the original poster clarifies, “It’s obviously a cheeky wink aimed at us.” Meanwhile on the Silksong subreddit, the very same clown-nose screenshot is shared beneath the heading, “DAMN YOU, GEOFFFFF!”

THIS IS SOMEHOW REAL GEOFF JUST TEASED SILKSONG FOR GAMESCOM from r/HollowKnight

A near-identical scenario cropped up after Summer Game Fest 2025 wrapped, following the Xbox Games Showcase. When a blink-and-you-miss-it Silksong cameo during the ASUS ROG Xbox Ally reveal stoked excitement, hopes only intensified after Team Cherry reiterated the release is slated “before the holiday season.” All that remains is to watch tonight’s Opening Night Live broadcast and find out.

After years lost in the clouds of countless fantasy kingdoms, Anna earned degrees in English Literature and Medieval History from the University of Edinburgh, then parlayed that passion into narrative design and games journalism. Her bylines span Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and others. When she isn’t hammering the keyboard to meet deadlines, you’ll catch her fantasizing about life as a fairy druid who befriends every woodland creature—or pouring another 1,000 hours into Baldur’s Gate 3’s Underdark. Away from the PC, she’s always accompanied by a dog-eared fantasy novel, whichever handheld console she can fit in a pocket, and at least two dormant Tamagotchis.